LXXIV. leg. XVI. Columns 1761-1764. Tr.  Paul Müller.

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Legio XVI was most probably a new creation of Augustus. Its origins perhaps lay in the time of the civil wars between the Triumvirs, if a small silver coin, which was, by the opinion of experts, minted in Africa, with the head of the young Augustus on the front and a jumping lion, titled LEG XVI on the reverse (Cohen I² p. 89 nr. 186. 187), was coined before the battle of Actium (Ztschr. f. Numism. II 115). But, in any case, leg. XVI existed from the beginning of the army as reorganized under Augustus. (Y. 726 = 30 BC)  Apart from this coin, which seems to suggest  a stay in Africa, there is no evidence that the legion, after the reorganization of 27 BC, belonged to any other army than the Gallic one, and it is likely, that it was a part of the army of Gallia Comata from the start on (Ritterling, Bonn. Jahrb. CXIV 167 and 176).

From the time of Drusus at the latest, the army group which contained leg. XVI had its winter quarters on the Rhine, in Mogontiacum. There it was first mentioned in AD 14 (Tac. Ann. I 37). Many inscriptions have been found in and around Mainz (some of which date back to the time before the Varian disaster (e.g. XIII 11857. 11858). Tombstones of soldiers of leg. XVI are: CIL XIII 6936, 11864 (where one can only restore leg XVI or XIIII), 11857*), 6937, 6938, 6939, 6940, 6941, 6942, 6943, 11858, 6944, 11837 (of a centurio), 6945, 6946, 11859, 6947, 6948, and perhaps Röm.-Germ. Korr.-Bl. 1916, 58 (where Körber restores it as leg. XVI). Honoured with dona militaria were a soldier (XIII 6938) and the centurio L. Refidius Bassus (XIII 11837). The small fragment 6948a perhaps belongs to the epitaph of a veteran of the legion. Another veteran, who was in this position a curator civium roman. Mogontiaci and later returned to his home-town Mediolanum (CIL 5747, c.f. 5748), belongs to the time before the legion was moved to the lower Rhine. The same is valid for two brothers from Brixia, L. Aelius and P. Aelius, each of them describing himself as a veteranus militavit legione XVI in Germania (CIL VI 3560), as well as for T. Iulius Festus, who found a home in Nemausus, Ti. Caesaris divi Aug. f. Augusti miles missicus, after he had served with leg. XVI for 25 years (CIL XII 3179). A lead-bar with the moulded inscription LEG XVI, which was found in the Rhine, must date from the times of Tiberius or Caligula (CIL XIII 3. 10029, 309, abgeb. Mainz. Ztschr. III 1868f. Taf. XIV Fig. 3); the assumption that it could be an instrument for the measurement of the water-levels may be correct.

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The short epitaph of a veter. Leg. XVI from Alexandria Troas (Rev. épigr. N. p. I 1913, 322) is of special interest. Because Alexandria was a colony, which was founded by Augustus between the years 727 and 742, and thus before 12 BC (Gardthausen Augustus II 2, 480, 6. Kornemann o. Bd. IV S. 550 nr. 254. Kubitschek Imperium roman. 247), C. Caesius must have been one of the veterans who were settled there by Augustus: it would otherwisel be hard to explain how this man came so far to the east from one of the legions on the Rhine.
In AD 43 at the latest, leg. XVI must have left its winter quarters at Mainz and been integrated into the army of the lower Rhine. It replaced leg. XX, which went  to Britannia as a part of the expeditionary corps of A. Plautius, in its quarters at Novaesium. A small fragment of a building inscription, which was found near the left principal gate and which seems to have included a mention of their legate L. Cornelius Pusio (s. Ritterling Bonn. Jahrb. CXXV 1919, 183ff.)**), perhaps testifies to new building in the camp by leg. XVI. The remaining epigraphic traces of the legion in ths location only consist of a single epitaph (CIL XIII 8552 of an eques, born in Heraclea in Macedonia), and a couple of stamped bricks (c.f. Brambach 262. (273?). 276. 279 a. b). All the stamped brick material from the camp has now been collated,  reviewed and illustrated by Lehner Bonn. Jahrb. CXI/XII 289f.; 300a 1-3 Taf. XXI Fig. 1-6. On this evidence, the total number of stamped bricks found in the camp is 175.  Some antefixae

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with  imprints of a lion in four different principal types (ibid. p. 308f. Taf. XXII), which are, by a certain amount, rightly alluded to the leg. XVI (ibid. p. 14 and 306f.) point at the lion as the heraldic animal of the legion, on the grounds of the above mentioned silver coin of Augustus (Cohen I² 186. 187). Stamped bricks of the legion were often used as building material, outside of the winter quarters, in the neighbouring fort Gelduba (= Gellep)(Bonn. Jahrb. XXXVIII 166, 9, 10. Brambach 245 c. 1. 2). Very seldom one can find their seal in Holland (Brambach 23 c).
The tombstone of a Soldier, which was found in Cologne, could belong to a man, who was detached to the headquarters (CIL XIII 8285). The services of a Centurio and a Vexilarii of the leg. XVI in the tuff quarries of Brohl, are witnessed by the altar XIII 7720, which presumably comes from Neronian times. Except the above mentioned legat Cornelius Puso, Q. Trebellius Catulus was another commander of the legion under Claudius (CIL VI 31771); in the same time was the primipilus iter(um) leg. XVI Ga[ll(icae)] an unknown man (CIL X 1711) and trib. militum was M. Helvius Geminus (III 6074).
During the times of the elevation of Vitellius as imperator, the move of the Rhine legions to Italy, the different battles against the followers of Otho and after that against the fraction leaders of Vespasian, the absolute defeat of the Vitellians near Cremona, the leg. XVI shared its destiny with the other troop units and didn't managed to emerge notably. The legion is only specifically mentioned at Tac. Hist. I 55 (prelude of the uprise against Galba), II 100 (deployment of the Vitellian troops out of Rome), III 22 (battle formation at the decisive battle). During the stay of the Vitellians, which were victorious against Otho, in Rome, units of the leg. XVI. were included into the new established Praetorian cohorts. One individual case is conveyed: C. Vedennius Moderatus from Antium, who joined the leg. XVI in the year 59, was tran(s)lat(us) in coh. IX pr(aetoriam) (CIL VI 2725). He stayed there until the end of the length of service for Praetorians for eight further years. The existence of the vexillatio of the legion, which had been moved to Italy, probably had come to an end after the defeat at Cremona.
The actual legion, which remained in the winter quarters of Novaesium with the eagle, had yet to undertake the hopeless fights of the undisciplined and undutiful troops against the rebellious Gauls and Germans and to go through the dishonour of the capitulation and the captivity. Its legat at first was presumably Numisius Rufus, who was involved in the defense of Vetera with members of his legion (hist. IV 22), but later was delivered to the enemies (hist. IV 59. 77, † IV 70). The legion in its winter quarters is mentioned in hist IV 26 and 62. Together with the leg. I of Bonn, they went into the captivity of Trier. As then the new troops under Petilius Cerialis, which were sent by Vespasian, arrived at the Rhinelands, it took its oath once again

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(hist. IV 70) and fought with its comrades again on the side of the Romans, but not laudable (hist. IV 77). At the decisive battle of Vetera, it participated, too (hist. V 16). During the reorganisation of the state and the army, the leg. XVI, whose eagle was coated in all dishonour and ignominy, was disbanded by Vespasian (Ritterling De legione X gemina 66).

Legati legionis:
Cornelius L. f Gal. Pusio (Annius Messalla), Cil VI 31706. Not. d. scavi 1914, 101. Bonn. Jahrb. CXXV 183ff. Cichorius R. Stud. 402ff.
Numisius Rufus. In the year 69/70, Tac. Hist. IV 22. 59. 70. 77.
Q. Trebellius [Q. f.] Ter. Catulus, under Claudius, CIL VI 31771.

Tribuni militum:
Claudius Sanctus (?), in the year 69, Tac. Hist. IV 62. He is the leader of the legion during the capitulation to the rebells and the withdrawal from Novaesium to Trier. Because the legat of the legion had been tied up, the soldiers ask themselves before the deployment: Quale ilud iter? Quis dux viae? Because the Tribunus laticlavius represents the legat of the legion normally, we must think of this one. Otherwise we must think of the Praefectus castrorum.
M. Helvius L. f. Fal. Geminus, trib. milit. leg. XVI Germaniae, (laticl.), under Caligula or Claudius, CIL III 6074.
P. Quinctius P. f. Rom., perhaps from the time of the Triumvirate, VI 3533.
Primi ordines:
L. Aurelius L. f. Pal. Rufus, primopilaris, X 3757. Unknown, primipilus iterum (under Claudius), X 1711.

Centuriones:
L. Iulius Classicus, times of Claudius or Nero, CIL XIII 7720.

L. Refidius L. f. Ter. Bassus, domo Venafro, before the year 43, XIII 11837.
Scruttarius, times of Augustus, XIII 11857 (vide supra p. 1761, note *).
Seius …., before the year 43, XIII 6941.
…. Viator, before the year 43, XIII 6942.
M. Vibrius Marcellus, tomes of Claudius or Nero, VI 31706.
Perhaps some scratched names of centurios on bronze fittings from Novaesium name a few of the leg. XVI. (or of the VI?):
Claudius Bassus, B. Jahrb. XCV 79ff. = CXI/XII 406 Fig. 21. CIL VIII 10027, 217.
Clo. …., B. Jahrb. CXI/XII 406 = CIL XIII 10027, 221.
Fir(mius) Max(imus), CIL XIII 10027, 214.
Ter(entius) Romanus, XIII 10027, 222; c.f. Ephem. epigr. VII 881 (?).

Information about the homes of the soldiers:
A. During the times of Augustus, Tiberius and Caligula:
Italia: Brixia (CIL VI 3560 2 brothers), Cremona (XIII 11864, not sure if there is leg. XVI. to complement), Hispel(l)um (XIII 6943), 2 Mediolanum (XIII 11858. V 5747 (5748), Pistoriae (XIII 6942), 2 Placentia (XIII 6963. 6946), (Venafrum XIII 11837, one centurio), Vercellae (XIII 6939).
Gallia Narbon.: Cabalio (XIII 6945), 2 Vienna (XIII 6944. 11859).
Lugudunensis: Lugudunum (XIII 6941).
B. From the times of Claudius and Nero:
Italia: Antium (VI 2725), Mediolanum (V 5830).
Macedonia: Heraclea (XIII 8552).

*) The stone must belong to the times of Augustus, apparently to the first half of his government, if the reference of the centurio Scruttarius to the participant of the battle of Actium is correct (Macrob. II 4, 27); s. Cichorius Röm. Stud. 283f.

**) Dealing with the career of Pusio through Cichorius (Röm. Studien 402-406) has not brought any new information, in contrary to my conclusion there. The statement (402, 2), that I have set the commando of the legion by Pusio into the times of Tiberius and that I have assumed a timespan of 40 years until he has reached the consulate, presumably  resulted  by an error of mind; regarding the commando of the legion, I only thought of the times of Claudius or Nero (p. 184 and 187). One can not deviate too far from the age determination of the bronze bust by Bienkowski, which is based on stylistic reasons, especially, because the thesis, that the surname of the legion can only be found since Claudius (Cichorius 403, again e.g. on p. 369) is wrong. The construction of the bust can't be pressed down  to the year 69, how Cichorius 406 wanted it to be; the benefactor, centurio of the leg. XVI, could have been ordered to the capital a few years earlier, not necessarily by the cause of military activities. Furthermore, the assumption of Cichorius 405, that Pusio came from Tibur, in contrary to my oppinon of Spanish origins, can't be correct, because of his Tribus Galeria.